Weekend at the House on Haunted Hill
by famous99
Summary: Sandy and Kirsten don't trust Ryan and Seth alone in the house when they go away for a weekend.
1. Default Chapter

This was written as a gift for Dulcey... she posted the challenge and I accepted.

Here's her request:

PAIRING/CHARACTERS: Ryan, Seth, Julie, Caleb, and whoever else you want to add. As for pairings, um, non-slash, and preferably not Ryan/Marissa. Anything else goes.  
PREFERRED LENGTH: how long do you want the story to be? At least a decent-sized one-shot (1,000+ words).  
SCENARIO and PLOT: Kirsten and Sandy are going away for the weekend, but the boys have gotten into some sort of trouble recently, and they don't want to leave them home alone so they send Seth and Ryan to stay with Julie and Caleb.  
RATING: G - R  
SMUT: Not necessary, although if you want to add some DHR I won't complain a bit!  
SPECIFICS: I'd like to see the boys trying to sneak out of the house, to meet their girlfriends or go to some party, anything that will result in them getting caught and trying to explain their way out of trouble. Caleb doesn't hate Ryan as much as in the past several episodes, and his giving the boys a talk about girls and sex is optional, but would be wonderful if you're so inclined.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of it, but starting to think if I did, I might do a better job.

* * *

They were sitting in Seth's room; music was playing softly on the stereo. He wasn't sure what band it was; Modest Mouth, Death Cab, Bright Eyes, one of those. He wasn't sure and he didn't really care. Seth was galloping Captain Oats across the bed and talking a mile a minute.

"So this weekend it's just you and me, man. Mom and Dad are going out of town. Mom has some sort of business meeting."

Ryan shrugged. "Okay." He had been there when Sandy and Kirsten had announced their plans.

"Don't you get it?" Seth's eyes were wide; his dimples exploding off of his face. "When the cat's away the mice will play. It's the perfect opportunity to throw a party."

"Like the one your aunt threw New Years?"

Seth shook his head from side to side. "The guest list will be select. It won't get out of hand. And we won't be locked in the pool house."

"Seth, we were just grounded last weekend, do you think it's a good idea to get your parents angry so soon? We had to endure a six-hour Stallone marathon. I don't think I could handle much more."

"They'll never know. That's the beauty of it."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "You always say that. You said that when we snuck off to Tijuana. You said that last night when you convinced me to stay at the party passed our curfew. They always catch us."

"They didn't figure out how the car got trashed at that house party in Long Beach. Mom still thinks it was at the Imax."

"She never believed us, she was just never sure of the truth. And you know they'll figure out that there was a party here. They're onto us."

Kirsten stood outside Seth's room, her arms crossed. Her cheeks were burning as she overheard her sons planning a while she and Sandy were out of town. Obviously, grounding them wasn't enough. At the same time, she bit her lip, trying to cover her amusement; she finally knew the truth behind her trashed Range Rover. She felt like pumping her hands in the air, triumphant with her nugget of knowledge. And the boys would not get away with throwing a party while she and Sandy were gone.

"We're not going," she told her husband five minutes later. She was sitting at her vanity table, looking at Sandy through the mirror, running a brush through her golden locks. Sandy was sitting on the bench at the edge of their bed, changing his shoes.

"Honey, I don't mind staying home. Really, I don't. But tell it to your dad. I thought this was a really important business meeting."

She sighed. "It is. But he'll have to understand. The boys come first."

Sandy arched his brows.

"He'll understand!"

He threw up his hands as if in surrender. "Honey, if you're dad agrees, I'm okay with that, we'll find a way to spend time with each other. Worse comes to worst, I'll stay behind and you'll go yourself."

"Oh no." She shook her head vehemently, her hair flying from side to side. A couple of strands stuck to her lips. She pulled them away. "If I'm going you're going. I am not going to shmooze these old geezers on my own. Dad will just have to understand."

Sandy walked up behind his wife and put his large hands on her shoulders and started to knead. "You are so tense, honey. You need to calm down."

"How can I? They're staying out all night, locked in the mall. Sneaking out to be with girls. They're coming home late from parties. And I know they're drinking. Maybe they're not getting drunk, but they're drinking. And I finally found out what happened to the Range Rover."

Sandy furrowed his brows. "The car is fine. What happened to it?"

"It wasn't the Imax. They took it to a party in Long Beach."

Sandy burst out in raucous laughter. He was laughing so hard, he had to hold his belly. "Honey that was two summers ago."

She nodded. "At least that summer Ryan was nervous we might not let him stay. Any trouble he got into, he was being led by the nose by Seth. Now he knows he's here for good and they have each other. Those two together are incorrigible."

He kissed the tip of her nose. "You're incorrigible. But if you want to stay behind, and skip the business trip, I'm okay with it." He left the room, trying to wipe the smirk from his face before he went to ream out the boys.

Kirsten straightened her jacket and took a deep breath before knocking on her father's office. Her stomach was fluttering, as if she were eighteen again, about to share the news that she and Jimmy had broken up and she had met someone in college. In her head, Kirsten chastised herself, reminded herself that she was a grown woman with two teenage sons and that she was her father's right hand in business. She could face him.

She picked up her hand and rapped loudly on his door. Caleb looked up from his desk and smiled when he saw his daughter. "Kiki, come in." She still wished he would stop calling her that.

"Good morning, Dad." She kissed him lightly on his cheek, feeling the scratchy stubble under her lips. "How are you feeling this morning?"

It wasn't long since her father's heart attack and he was only at work part time as per doctor's orders. That was why she had been selected to go on this very important business trip. So Kirsten dealt with her father as if he were glass. She tried to keep his stress level low, by not foisting any huge surprises on him or getting him riled up about anything. She knew she was about to upset him.

"Are you taking your medicine?" she asked.

Caleb looked up from his sheaf of papers and put down his pen. "What do you need, Kiki?"

She decided it was a parent's instinct. When the boys, well at least Seth, came to her asking how her day was and how she was feeling she knew that they wanted something from her.

"I need to talk to you about the trip to San Francisco. Sandy and I can't make it."

"Why the hell not?" Caleb exploded.

"Dad, calm down. I'll explain. It's the boys. They just need us now. Things have been so tense these few weeks between Sandy and me and they're acting out. We need to be here for them. Frankly, I don't trust them on their own."

Caleb was breathing heavily. "Kirsten, I need you on this deal. My doctor won't okay the trip to San Francisco or I'd do it myself."

"So let Julie go for you."

He raised his brows.

Kirsten sank into the chair across from his father's desk. "Okay. Okay. I know this is important, but what should I do about the boys. I overheard them last night planning a party while we're away. The other night they came home at three a.m. Sandy and I were worried out of our minds." She didn't tell him about the night they nearly spent on the mall; when Ryan had risked his probation for a stupid teenage prank.

"Didn't you try to reach them on their phones?"

"Conveniently turned off." She put an arm on the edge of Caleb's desk. "Seth keeps dragging Ryan to these parties. God knows what goes on at them. Every chance he gets, Seth sneaks out of the house. At least when Sandy and I tell Ryan he's grounded he stays grounded. Seth," she shook her head, "Seth is impossible."

"Kirsten, I understand your concern for the boys. I really do. And I haven't forgotten Seth's little stunt back in January when he stole my car."

Kirsten bit her lip, hoping her father wouldn't start blaming Ryan again.

"Don't worry. I don't blame Ryan anymore, though you know that's where he got the idea that to be a bad boy you steal cars. But Seth's been making his own decisions. I know that now." Her father folded his hands in front of him. "What if they stay with me for the weekend? Julie and I will make sure they won't get into any mischief."

"I don't know." She thought back to her anniversary weekend. Seth was sneaking out to be with Alex. Ryan was sneaking around making out with her new sister. Sandy had threatened that if they couldn't behave, they send them to Caleb's. It wasn't a good idea. But the Culver project was important to restoring the Newport Group to its former glory. It would do more to restore the image of the company than Julie's _Newport Living_ project. "I'll discuss it with Sandy. No promises. My family comes first."

"They'll be fine at my house. I didn't do too bad a job with my two girls."

Kirsten arched a brow, but bit back a retort.

"What do you think, Sandy?" She was back at her desk, her office door closed. She had asked her receptionist to please hold all her calls for the next twenty minutes. "This meeting is very important to my dad. I need to do this for him. Should we send the boys to him and Julie?"

The thought sent a wave of nausea through her. She tasted the bitter taste of bile in her throat. Could she do that to her boys?

"You know," Sandy was slowly saying on the other end of the line. "Maybe this will teach them a good lesson. We warned the boys months ago that if they didn't behave this might happen. They keep acting out."

"That's not fair. It's been a tough few months for them. Everyone's been walking around the house on eggshells. We can't blame them."

"You're making excuses for them now?" But she heard the smirk in his voice on the other end of the phone.

Kirsten sighed. "You're right. This will teach them a lesson. I'll tell my father and Julie that they can expect some houseguests and we can tell the boys tonight at dinner."

It was like a bomb had been dropped in the Cohen kitchen. Ryan was stirring a steaming pot of tomato sauce. The scent of oregano and garlic wafted through the room. Seth was chopping vegetables for the salad. Both were trying to make amends for their late night out. They were also trying to build the parents trust again, prove that they could be responsible. It had been Seth's idea. Ryan had reminded him that the pancakes hadn't worked either. Seth insisted this would be more subtle.

Kirsten walked in to the room, inhaling deeply. "Smells good in here." Sandy followed her, and put his briefcase on the counter near the kitchen door.

"Dinner will be ready in around twenty minutes." Ryan cracked a handful of spaghetti into a pot of boiling water. He grabbed another bunch, snapped them in half and threw it into the pot.

"Thanks honey. That was sweet of you to prepare supper."

"We need to talk about this weekend boys."

Ryan and Seth exchanged glances. Sandy had yelled at them the night before about how in no uncertain terms was there to be a party while they were gone. But while sitting in the student lounge Seth had convinced Ryan that this was their perfect cover.

"They'd never suspect we'd actually try it," he had said.

"Your mom tried getting out of this business trip, but Caleb really needs her and she needs me. But we don't trust you in the house alone."

"You can trust us." Seth looked up from the cutting board. "Really."

Sandy sighed. "Nice try. I don't buy it. That's why you're staying at your Grandfather's house while we're in San Francisco."

Ryan had been reaching up in the cabinet above the stove to take down the glasses for dinner. When he heard Sandy's proclamation his hand slipped and the glass fell directly into the pot of tomato sauce. Red splattered onto the splashboard, and all over the counter as well as his shirt. Stray bits of onion and meat landed in his hair. Sauce hung off the end of his lashes.

"Shit." He looked up horrified. "Sorry."

Kirsten jumped up from her chair and ran around the counter. She grabbed a towel and wiped the sauce off of Ryan's face. She bit the inside of her cheek to suppress a giggle.

"Honey, the news isn't that terrible. It's only for a weekend. And my father promises to be on his best behavior. He won't insult you. I promise."

Ryan took the towel from Kirsten and rubbed his shirt, only making the red seep deeper into his shirt. He'd have to take it off and soak it so Rosa wouldn't have a hard time when doing his laundry.

"I know we've screwed up," Ryan started slowly. "But really, you can trust us. I promise I won't follow Seth into anymore trouble."

Kirsten shook her head. She spun the roll of paper towels and ripped off a piece and wet under the faucet before starting to clean the counter and splashboard. "I'm still not over your little mall stunt. At least there you gave us the truth."

Ryan bowed his head, his chin hanging low on his chest. Kirsten noted that his hair was getting shaggy and he needed a haircut.

"I'm sorry about that. I just needed to get my mind off of Lindsay."

"That's great Ryan," Sandy jumped in. "Get yourself thrown back into Juvie to get your mind off of a girl. That's really using your brain. You and Seth and the girls would have landed in a world of trouble had you been caught. The two of you just haven't been using any common sense lately."

"Dad, it was just a prank. It's not like we got locked inside on purpose."

"A stupid one. You cannot stay home alone. End of discussion. Your mother and I can't be here and so we're sending you to your grandfather. You don't like it, too bad. And when you're there, you're both still grounded for the weekend. You will not go out. There's plenty to do there to keep you occupied."

"Be fair Dad!"

"You can be grounded the week after that too, Seth. I don't mind." Sandy glared at him.

Seth held up his hands. "You win."

"Don't be a smartass."

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Yeah," Ryan agreed. "Sorry we made you distrust us so much." He had turned back to the stove and lowered the flame on the sauce and spaghetti. He did feel bad, but not that bad. Inwardly, he was smiling, glad that Sandy and Kirsten were finally paying attention to them again. Even if it meant they were angry.


	2. 2

This was written as a gift for Dulcey... she posted the challenge and I accepted. 

Here's her request:

PAIRING/CHARACTERS: Ryan, Seth, Julie, Caleb, and whoever else you want to add. As for pairings, um, non-slash, and preferably not Ryan/Marissa. Anything else goes.  
PREFERRED LENGTH: how long do you want the story to be? At least a decent-sized one-shot (1,000+ words).  
SCENARIO and PLOT: Kirsten and Sandy are going away for the weekend, but the boys have gotten into some sort of trouble recently, and they don't want to leave them home alone so they send Seth and Ryan to stay with Julie and Caleb.  
RATING: G - R  
SMUT: Not necessary, although if you want to add some DHR I won't complain a bit!  
SPECIFICS: I'd like to see the boys trying to sneak out of the house, to meet their girlfriends or go to some party, anything that will result in them getting caught and trying to explain their way out of trouble. Caleb doesn't hate Ryan as much as in the past several episodes, and his giving the boys a talk about girls and sex is optional, but would be wonderful if you're so inclined.

I forgot to thank **Chazper** last chapter for reading, reviewing and making corrections. And a second thanks to **Chazper** who did it again this time. And thanks to **SMC36** who identified what car Marissa drives this season.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of it... But I'll gladly exchange "my" library for a part of it. Yeah, I didn't think that would work.

* * *

Sandy and Kirsten walked the boys into Caleb's house. Neither trusted them not to bolt. After the scene in the kitchen, where Sandy had threatened to ground them until eternity, the complaining had stopped. During the ensuing week, Seth had tried to dissuade his parents once or twice from the cruel and unusual punishment of staying in the "house on haunted hill," to no avail. Eventually, Seth and Ryan just let it go and decided they just had to face the consequences of their actions. But Ryan saw the wheels turning behind Seth's eyes. He knew Seth was planning something. He wasn't sure what.

Marissa had laughed at them all week, and teased them mercilessly. Ryan had suggested she come home that weekend, since it was obvious her relationship with Alex was strained, but she refused. She claimed that they were going to L.A. to party with some of Alex's friends. Ryan had shrugged, not disappointed, but hoping someone would distract Caleb and Julie from their houseguests.

Now they were there. Ryan took a deep breath as he waited for the door to open, wondering what the weekend would bring.

Julie answered the door, wearing a casual velour sweat suit; her hair was perfectly coiffed and her face was fully made-up. If his mom had been in sweats, thought Ryan, she would definitely be sans make-up, her hair would be disheveled and there was a good chance she'd be rip-roaring drunk. He shook his head to clear the image from his mind. Dawn was long gone from his life. It had been a year-and-a-half since he had last seen her and still she managed to creep into his thoughts.

"Ryan! Seth!" Julie wore a large insincere smile pasted across her face. "Welcome to our home."

Ryan and Seth exchanged sideways glances. Seth arched his brows which made Ryan think that they were growing in and soon would be as bushy and unwieldy as Sandy's. With deep breaths, they returned Julie's smile.

"Come on boys. I'll show you to your room." Julie peered out behind Seth and Ryan and waved at Sandy and Kirsten. "Have fun. And good luck Kirsten. I know you'll be awesome. Make your father proud."

Kirsten grimaced. "Thanks Julie." She stepped towards Seth and Ryan. "Behave yourselves boys. And we'll call to check on you."

"It's not too late to change your mind."

Kirsten sighed. "Seth. Don't make this any harder than it already is." She straightened his collar. "Have fun."

He rolled his eyes. "You grounded us." He looked like he was going to say something else, but his eyes slid to Julie and he clamped his mouth shut.

"Well, there's a lot to do here."

"I'm sure Grandpa has all the latest PlayStation games."

She kissed his cheek. "Then make the best of this weekend," she answered absently, not recognizing the sarcastic note in his voice. She turned to Ryan. "Thanks for not making this any harder than it is." He rolled his eyes. "It won't be that bad." Kirsten's heart dropped as Ryan cocked his head to the side and arched his brows. It was what Seth called the look that conveyed everything. She fidgeted with his plaid shirt, which he wore open over a wifebeater, and leaned in to give him a kiss. Ryan accepted it and she was grateful he wasn't too mad at her. "Be good. We'll call."

"Have fun, Kirsten and don't worry." He hoisted his bag over his shoulder and followed Seth inside the house. He'd only been inside a few times. The first time was when he had just come back from Chino and had met up with Marissa to tell her about his summer. Then there had been a couple of errands that he had run for Kirsten and a Newport Group function that he had been forced to attend with the Cohens. He didn't think he could ever get used to the house.

The large foyer was tiled with glossy speckled granite, sending shivers down Ryan's spine. He glanced at Seth and noticed his brother was rubbing his bare arms. So he wasn't the only one.

"You don't mind bunking together? Do you?" Julie asked as she opened the door to a large bedroom. There were twin beds perpendicular to each other covered in matching blue plaid linen. It was very similar to the linen Seth had in his room.

"Sure, Julie, that's okay," Seth answered for them. He threw a look at Ryan. "So, um, we'll be okay. No need to entertain us. We'll find something to do."

"Your parents said that you were grounded from going out this weekend. Something about spending the night in the mall."

Seth tore his eyes away from Julie and concentrated on the room's décor. Ryan's eyes were glued to the plush blue carpet and felt his face burning. Had Sandy and Kirsten taken a billboard out in Time Square so everyone knew they had screwed up?

"Caleb thought we should have a family dinner, since you can't make other plans. Marissa is in L.A. this weekend and Caitlyn is still in school. So it will just be the four of us."

Ryan realized she was no more enthused about the idea than he was.

"In the meanwhile, make yourselves at home. Take a dip in the pool. Use the game room." She held the edge of the door, as if she was about to leave. Ryan held his breath, hoping she would just go. "Dinner's at six."

"Thanks Julie. We'll be fine." Seth walked up behind her and grabbed the top of the door so he could close it after her. To Ryan it looked like he was subtly trying to edge her out of the room, but it wasn't working.

Julie just glanced at her watch. "Did you eat lunch yet? Gilda, that's our maid, she could prepare something for you."

"No. Thank you. We ate before we came here. We'll be fine."

"Well. Okay. Um, if you need me, I'll be around."

They watched Julie leave. When she was out of their line of vision, Ryan punched Seth in the arm.

"Ow. Dude. What was that for?"

"We didn't eat lunch. I'm hungry."

"I know. So am I."

"So Gilda could have fixed us something," Ryan said through clenched teeth. "Or we could have gone to the kitchen and prepared something for ourselves. But now we have to wait until six or at least a couple of hours before we show up in the kitchen."

Ryan groaned when he thought about dinner with the gruesome twosome. He'd never do anything wrong again. He'd be a saint until he turned eighteen. When Sandy and Kirsten called to check in, he'd beg for mercy. Maybe they would change their minds and let them got back home. A family dinner had not been part of the deal.

Seth flopped down on the bed, wrinkling the linen. "We are not hanging around here until six. We're going to the pier and gorging ourselves at the diner."

"Seth, we're grounded."

He rolled his eyes. "When did you become such a wuss? What happened to the bad boy from Chino that Dad brought home? Mom and Dad are on the way to San Francisco. Grandpa's obviously not around and Julie is holed up somewhere. She won't care."

"Well, how are we going to get there? My bike is back at the house. So is your skateboard. Are we going to hoof it? It'll take hours."

Seth sighed as he slowly sat back up. "Do you always have to be the voice of reason?" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "I got it!" He pumped a fist in the air. "We'll borrow a car."

Ryan held up his hands and backed away. "I'm not going there. Last time you borrowed your grandpa's car the cops brought you home."

Seth waved his arm as if to dismiss Ryan's misgivings. "That was a huge misunderstanding. They won't call the cops again." He stopped to think. If they did call the cops his parents would be sure to find out. Ryan's probation would be at risk. "Okay, this time I really have it." He pumped the fist again, smiling devilishly, his dimples digging into his cheeks. "We'll take Marissa's car. I saw it in the driveway. They'll just think she came back for it."

"And where would the keys be?"

Seth groaned and fell back on the mattress. He stared at the ceiling, mutely. Ryan thought he might be counting the tiles. Suddenly, an impish grin spread across Seth's face. His fist went up in the air and he slowly sat up.

"Before I scream I got it, can you think of any other holes in my plan?"

"Aside from the fact that when we're caught your parents are going to kill us?" Ryan shook his head. "No."

"Good. Good." Seth rubbed his hands together. "I know they keep a key hook in the kitchen, near the back door. I bet Marissa put a copy there. We'll check there. If not, there will probably be something in her room."

Ryan sighed. Seth was onto a plan. He could let Seth go by himself, but he'd never hear the end of it. It was easier to just go along with the plan and face the consequences later. There were only twenty-four hours in a day and Sandy was a child advocate. He wouldn't force them to watch a Stallone marathon for that long without a break. Seth, on the other hand, would harp on Ryan's "wussiness" a lot longer than any punishment his parents might mete out. He hoped.

"Okay. Let's do it."

"Then let's roll."

Seth yanked open the bedroom door and stuck his head out of the door, looking both ways before he ducked out of the room. Ryan rolled his eyes and followed. Seth stopped suddenly at the top of the stairs and Ryan bumped into him.

"Sorry, man."

"Ssshh!" Seth held up his finger to his lips. Dramatically, he peered in every which direction before tiptoeing down the stairs. "Follow me," he said in a loud whisper, waving his hands.

Ryan resisted punching Seth hard in the arm. He followed Seth, who seemed confident in the layout, a few steps behind so that he didn't rear end him again. Ryan was sure he would get lost. But Seth visited his grandfather a lot more often and spent more time in the Nichol home. Finally, after what seemed like an endless walk through rooms of elaborately decorated rooms, they arrived in the kitchen.

He looked around for the key hook Seth had mentioned, but didn't see one. "Where is it?" he asked Seth.

"By the… door?" It turned into a question when Seth realized he didn't see it. "It's here somewhere. I know I saw it." He scanned the walls, but didn't find anything. "Maybe I saw it inside one of the cabinets?" He started opening them up one by one. On his third try he found it. "Bingo. Now help me find the one that goes to Marissa's car."

Ryan stood behind Seth and scanned the dizzying array of keys. "That one?" He pointed to a key. It says Mustang on it."

"Makes sense."

Seth grabbed it off the hook.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Both boys snapped around at Julie's shrill voice. She was standing at the entrance of the kitchen, her hands crossed, tapping her foot expectantly.

"G- going for a dip in the pool," Ryan stammered.

Julie rolled her eyes. "Sandy and Kirsten were right. Ryan, you are a terrible liar."

Ryan's face flushed. The next thing he'd find out was that Kirsten had shared his underwear size with Julie, just in case.

Julie held out her hand. "And the car keys were what?"

Seth reluctantly handed them over. "I was supposed to meet Summer at the pier," he mumbled.

"Does Summer know you're grounded?"

"You know, Julie," Seth wheedled, "My parents never have to know. We won't tell them if you don't."

"And face your mother's wrath? Because you know she will find out. No thank you. Now go back up to your room and stay there."

"Can't we at least watch some T.V.?" Seth hadn't noticed a television in their room. Which was sort of cheap of his grandfather. Grandpa could have afforded a television in each of the twenty thousand rooms in his mansion. "Hang out in the game room?"

Julie pursed her lips. "Maybe you should stick to your homework right now. I see too much freedom isn't the best idea right now."

Sheepishly, with heads hung low, Ryan and Seth filed out of the kitchen. Julie watched them thinking of Marissa and even Caitlyn who had barely reached her tween years. Boys were so much easier to handle than girls.

As soon as they halfway up the stairs, Seth shoved Ryan. "A dip in the pool? Couldn't you go for the obvious, like looking for food?"

"Don't put me in the position to lie. I don't do well at it."

"Then why do you always jump in?" Seth shook his head. "We'll never get out of here now."

Ryan whirled around on the fifth step. "Why didn't you tell me we were going to meet Summer? What was I going to do while the two of you were making it out."

"Hey, Ryan. You know I always have you covered. Summer was going to bring a friend."

Ryan groaned. "I'm glad we got caught then."

Back in their room, Seth flopped on his bed and Ryan pulled out his physics book. It was going to be a long weekend.


	3. 3

There are lots of thank yous today. First of all, thanks for all the kind reviews. They really keep me going. So click on that review button on the end. Thanks to Chazper for acting as Beta. Thanks to Swenglish for differentiating between ADD and ADHD to give my story a more authentic feel. And finally, thanks to Cheekymice, who may not realize it from reading the chapter, but it was her idea on LJ that got me through the dinner scene. (No the resemblance isn't there, but it was what you said about how Caleb and Julie would react.)

This is for Dulcey.

And I don't own any of the O.C. or its characters, but today their shenanigans are mine!

* * *

Julie had dreaded Kirsten's call. Now here she was with the phone in her hand and her husband's daughter was on the other end. She knew Kirsten would inevitably ask how the boys were behaving and she didn't know what she should answer. The boys deserved any trouble they got into. How stupid did they think she was? But she didn't want Kirsten to think she was an ineffective caregiver.

"Hi Julie. How are my boys doing?"

Julie decided that Kirsten didn't have to know the whole truth. "They're doing great. They've been studying all day."

On her end, Kirsten raised a brow at Sandy. Ryan maybe, but Seth studying all day? She was certain her son had undiagnosed ADHD. He couldn't sit for that long with an open book.

"Can I talk to them?"

Suddenly, Julie was grateful all over again that she had caught Ryan and Seth before they had made it out of the house. She could imagine her mortification as she tried to explain why she couldn't find them. She was also glad that she had kept popping in to check up on them, under the guise of offering the boys snacks and drinks and seeing if they needed anything. They had seen through her pretext, but it didn't matter as long as everyone played along.

"Of course." Julie laughed. Kirsten could tell it was forced. "Let me get them." She walked down the hall with the phone in hand. "Seth, Ryan. It's Kirsten." She held out the phone and waited for one of them to take it. The boys turned to each other, communicating silently. Trying to figure out what she had told their mother, no doubt. "She wants to talk to you."

Finally, Seth took the phone from Julie. "Hi Mom."

"Hi Seth. How are you doing?"

"I've been be—" He felt Ryan kick his ankle. "Owe. That hurt, man," he hissed, covering the mouthpiece. But he caught Ryan's drift. "Things are great. How was your flight up?"

"Uneventful. Dad and I are getting ready to meet for a business dinner. So what did you do all day?"

"Ryan and I studied and did our homework."

So they were all sticking to the same story, Kirsten thought. Something was definitely up. "All day?"

"Yeah."

"Seth Ezekiel, when was the last time you studied for six hours straight?"

He ran a hand through his tangled curls. His mom knew. He looked at Julie through his thick lashes, wondering what she had told his mother. But he knew Julie's number one goal, after milking his grandfather for every penny he had, was self-preservation. She would want to save face in front of his mother and appear to be Super Mom II.

"Okay, so I stopped to read some comics and I surfed the web too. Ryan really did study all day."

"Really?"

"Mom, would I lie to you?"

"You don't want me to answer that."

"Probably not. You want to talk to Ryan?" He didn't wait for Kirsten to answer and shoved the receiver into Ryan's hands.

"Hello," he said tentatively. Ryan could tell that Kirsten was looking for information, wondering if they were behaving. He didn't think Julie had mentioned anything. He just couldn't be sure. Maybe Kirsten was waiting for them to dig their own graves and then call them on it. No, Sandy and Kirsten weren't like that. They didn't play games.

"Hi Ryan. How was your day? Julie and Seth said you were studying all day."

"I had a lot to catch up on. Mr. Greenberg hasn't assigned me a new lab partner yet and it's a lot of work for one person."

"I didn't realize. I can call him on Monday and ask him to pair you up with someone."

He smiled, feeling the warmth of Kirsten's mothering spread through his insides. "Nah. I'll remind him again before class. But thanks. How was your trip in?"

"It was good. Sandy and I are going for that business dinner in a little while. He's insisting I finish getting ready. Everything is okay there?"

"Sure."

"Good. Well, Sandy and I will call tomorrow to check in."

"Tell Sandy I said hi."

"I will, honey. Good night."

Ryan pushed the talk button on the receiver and handed it back to Julie. No one said anything for a minute. It was as if they were all silently making a pact. Kirsten and Sandy would never have to know that they tried to sneak out.

"Caleb will be home in a little while. Why don't you wash up for dinner? I'm going to make sure everything is ready."

Julie left and Ryan groaned. "Seth, I can't have dinner with your Grandpa. Last time I ate with him, I gave him a heart attack."

He grabbed his multi-colored soft ball off the floor. He wasn't sure why he had packed it in, but he was glad he had. It helped him brood. Ryan fell back on the bed and threw the ball from hand to hand.

"You think they'll let me stay in here? Would it work if I said I wasn't hungry?"

"I'm not eating with the gruesome twosome by myself!"

"Seth! It's your fault we're here in the first place." Ryan sat up and threw the ball against the wall. It was soft and had no bounce so it dropped to the floor.

"My fault?" Seth scooped up the ball and sat down on the downy carpet, across from Ryan.

"Yes. Your fault," They volleyed the ball back and forth. "You're the one always getting us into trouble," He threw the ball with a big oomph. "You're the one who insisted on planning a party while your parents were out of town. You didn't even have the sense to make sure your door was closed!"

"Hey, buddy. You were the one who walked into my room and didn't shut the door behind you," Seth argued, putting all his effort in throwing the ball back to Ryan as hard as he could. "Don't put it on me. You're going to eat dinner with Grandpa and Julie and consider this atonement for some terrible sin you've committed that no one knows about."

"Like what?"

"You were in the bathroom an awfully long time the other day. What were you doing in there? Huh? I'm sure The One Above wouldn't look kindly on your behind the closed door active—" Seth didn't get a chance to finish his sentence. Ryan stood above him and punched him soundly in the arm.

"Ouch."

Ryan punched him again. Seth held up his hands to protect himself, laughing at Ryan's ire.

"Ryan, Seth. Is everything all right?" Julie knocked on the door and walked in. Apparently, she believed in the same level of privacy as Sandy and Kirsten.

They broke apart and stood sheepishly. "Everything's copasetic Grandma Julie." Seth grinned.

"Don't. You. Ever. Call. Me. That. Again."

Ryan bit the inside of his cheek as Seth cowered on the floor.

Julie took a deep breath, controlling her anger no doubt. "Caleb is home. You should come down and say hello. We'll eat dinner in a few minutes."

Ryan went into the bathroom attached to their room and turned on the tap. He ran his hands under the stream of water. "Seth, you have a death wish."

"It just slipped out."

Ryan started to lecture Seth on keeping his brain one step ahead of his mouth, but when he turned Seth was gone. The thought of dining with Caleb again caused Ryan's bowels to drop to the bottom of his feet, but he was hungry and his stomach was insisting on being fed.

When Ryan reached the bottom of the steps he saw Caleb embracing Seth and Julie standing off to the side with her mask glued in place. Didn't she know how obvious she looked with her false smile, he thought. His eyes flitted back to Caleb and Seth. Caleb was lightly pounding his grandson's chest, making another joke about him not being a football player. Seth grinned broadly, showing all his teeth.

"Ms. Cooper-Nichol, dinner is ready to be served." A middle-aged woman, dressed in a traditional maid's uniform entered the room. Julie said thank you and the woman nodded her head and backed out of the room. Julie had her staff whipped. Ryan was glad he didn't work for her.

"Shall we go into the dining room?" She looked up at Ryan who was standing uncertainly at the bottom step, gripping the hand railing so tight that his knuckles were turning white. He didn't have a choice; he would have to face dinner with the gruesome twosome. He would just focus on the food and nothing else.

He sat where Julie pointed, across from Seth with Julie and Caleb at the ends. Julie had brought out her finest China. The Cohens just used regular ceramic dishes save for a few special occasions. He wondered why dinner with him and Seth would be considered special. Different, unusual, not the norm, that was a better fit, but definitely not special.

As soon as Gilda started bringing in the food, Ryan bent his head low over his plate and began cutting his chicken furiously. The food smelled delicious, but Julie could have served horse meat and Brussel Sprouts and he would have chowed down. He was that hungry.

"Ryan, Seth tells me you aren't playing soccer this year."

Ryan's head jerked up and he stared at Caleb like a deer caught in headlights. Caleb was initiating a conversation with him and there wasn't an insult attached to it? He swallowed, feeling the large pieces of unchewed chicken bobbing down his food pipe.

"Um, yes. That's true."

"Why did you give it up?"

"I'm taking a pretty heavy load with AP Physics and Calculus."

Caleb nodded solemnly. "Colleges look for extra curricular activities and if you hope for a scholarship, they'll be wondering about that."

"There's the comic book club. Seth made me join."

Caleb arched his brow.

"What do you do in a comic book club?" Julie asked slowly.

"Discuss the latest X-Men or different secret identities of various super heroes." Thankfully, Seth's phone rang before he could finish. He pulled it out before anyone could comment. "It's Summer. I'll be a minute." He pushed back his chair and stood up.

"Seth," Julie's voice stopped him. "This is dinner. Put the phone away and let it go to voicemail."

"But it's Summer." Seth was standing behind his chair phone in hand.

"Would your parents let you take the phone call during dinner?"

"Well, yes," he lied, trying not to think of Sandy running to the phone and declaring to whoever was at the other end that they were interrupting their dinner.

Ryan carefully chewed another bite of chicken, keeping his head down. He was grateful for Seth's interruption. Caleb's polite interrogation had thrown him off balance. The phone's insistent ringing and Julie and Seth's standoff deflected attention from him.

Seth defiantly flipped open his phone and said, "One minute Summer. I'll be right there."

"Caleb." Julie's voice was between a screech and a whine. "Tell him he should call her back."

"What's the harm, Julie? Let him take the call."

Seth acknowledged his grandfather by putting the phone back up to his ear and walking into the next room for some privacy. Ryan wished he could sink into the floor. He'd been alone with Caleb. He'd been alone with Julie, but he'd never been alone with the gruesome twosome at the same time. He bowed his head and feverishly cut at his chicken, cringing when the silverware screeched loudly against the China.

"You should not have let him get away from that. This is supposed to be a family dinner."

"He's my grandson Julie, not my child. If he wants to talk to his girlfriend during dinner I don't care. Let his parents worry about manners and etiquette."

"We told Sandy and Kirsten we'd take care of them," she hissed across from the table.

Ryan wondered if she'd notice if he stood up and left. He'd polished off half his plate and suddenly, he wasn't so hungry anymore.

"I promised Kirsten that I would make sure the boys stayed out of trouble. Talking to your girlfriend on the phone during dinner does not constitute trouble. You've taken lots more crap from Marissa. Why are you harassing Seth about something so mundane?"

With a huff, Julie threw down her linen napkin onto her untouched plate of food, and stormed out, leaving just Caleb and Ryan at the table.

"Don't get married Ryan. It's not worth the trouble."

_Not if your wife is Julie Cooper-Nichol_, thought Ryan.

Seth returned two-minutes later. "You done eating, Ryan?"

Ryan pushed his plate back. "Yes."

"Good. Let's go."

Caleb was holding a glass of red wine in his hand and leaning back in his chair. But he sat up, alert and demanded, "Where do you think you're going, young man?"

"Out. With Summer. And she set Ryan up on a blind date."

"You're not going anywhere. Did you forget you were grounded?" Caleb sipped his wine. "You're to stay in the house." He peered over his glass. "Both of you."

"Grandpa, come on, mom and dad will never know."

"Seth, the answer is no. You can watch T.V., hook up the playstation I bought this afternoon, play a game of pool or read a book. But whatever you choose to do tonight it will be in this house."

Seth stalked out of the room and Ryan excused himself and followed Seth up to the guest room.

"I don't care what Grandpa says, Ryan. We're going."


	4. 4

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and I'm sorry it's taken me so long to update. RL just slammed me... I barely had two minutes to write. Thanks to **Chazper** who took the time to read and tinker and for great suggestions. All mistakes are still mine. I'm off on vacation on Friday. So I'm hoping I can write some more. The laptop is coming with me!

The O.C. and its characters don't belong to me... but Gigi does.

* * *

Damned if you do and damned if you don't, Ryan thought. If he followed Seth and they were caught, they'd be in for it. He was less intimidated by what Julie and Caleb would do than he was by the thought of how disappointed Sandy and Kirsten would be if they found out that he and Seth were still getting into trouble. How difficult was it to behave for a weekend? But what would he do if Seth went and left him behind. He'd have to find something to occupy himself and find a way to cover for Seth. No matter which way Ryan turned it over in his mind, he was screwed. At least if he went with Seth there was a chance of getting some action, which he had sorely missed since coming back to Newport in the fall.

"So, are you coming? Summer's going to be here soon."

"Summer's picking us up?"

"Well, we tried with Marissa's car and that didn't work. And we still don't have a mode of transportation." Seth rolled his eyes. "Ryan, why are you being such a wet rag?"

"The idiom is wet blanket."

"Whatever. You know what I mean." He peered into the mirror that hung over the mahogany dresser and fluffed his curls. "Lately, you're all about doing the right thing."

"Really? Because it seems like every time I turn around I'm getting grounded or yelled at." He flopped down on the bed he had claimed earlier, wrinkling the linen, and wondered if he'd be able to get some shut-eye under the same roof as Julie and Caleb.

"Come on, it's not that bad." Seth turned his back to the mirror and then snuck one more look before placing his full attention on Ryan. "It's okay to let loose every once in a while."

Ryan frowned. "I can't. I owe your parents too much."

Seth rolled his eyes and flopped down on the edge of the bed, sending the edges of the linen up in the air. "You owe them to be a kid. As teenagers it's our duty to sneak out and give the parents a run for their money."

"I'm on probation—" Ryan's voice trailed off. He didn't often mention his probation and it was almost over. But Sandy and Kirsten had reminded him how stupid he had been the night they had decided to sleep in the mall. At the time, it seemed like just a prank; a way to have fun and forget about Lindsay. He hadn't considered getting caught or the consequences. It just showed how mellow he had become in Newport. He had walked on eggshells his first year with the Cohens afraid that any misstep would land him in Juvie or taken from their home.

"Ryan, breaking curfew will not break your probation."

"I know," he said slowly, grasping the cotton sheets between his fingers. "It's just that…"

"You think you're disappointing them? I think they'd worry if you never did anything wrong."

Ryan cocked his head.

"Really, man. Okay, when you first came there were some…. issues. But since you came back from Chino this summer you've been like a monk."

"Tell me about it," Ryan muttered.

Seth smirked. "Aunt Lindsay never gave it up. Huh?"

Ryan grabbed a pillow from behind his head and flung it at Seth.

Seth caught it in his hands. "Don't mess with the hair, bro." He stood up and walked over to his suitcase, rummaging around for another shirt.

"Seth, I'm not going to go."

"Yes you are. It's me or pool with Grandpa and tea with Julie."

"Don't make this any harder than it already is."

"Live a little. Look, we're not doing anything tonight that can get you into legal trouble. I'm sorry about the mall. Okay? It was a dumb idea. I just don't think about your probation much. It seems like a million years ago."

"The mall wasn't your fault. I was into it." Ryan sighed. "It's just that… I don't like disappointing your parents. They've done so much for me."

"You've got to stop thinking of them as _my_ parents. They think of you as a son; my brother. I think of you as a brother. Hell, you punch me like a brother." Seth rubbed his arm, remembering the blows Ryan had delivered earlier that evening. "I know that somewhere out there you have another set of parents, but Sandy and Kirsten Cohen are as much your parents as they were."

"More," Ryan mumbled.

"They don't expect you to be an angel. So when they asked you to live with us they said that you should stop fighting, but you got into lots of fights last year and nothing happened." Seth hadn't meant to remind Ryan of Oliver and Eddie but it couldn't be helped. "It's okay to break the rules once in a while."

Seth expected Ryan to agree with him or disagree with him. He hadn't expected Ryan to burst into gales of laughter. Ryan sat doubled over, holding his midsection as if he had a stitch in his side.

"Ryan, are you okay?" Seth put a hand on his brother's back. "You're scaring me."

Ryan sat up and wiped away the tears that had pooled in the corner of his eyes. "Seth, if you put half as much effort into studying as you did trying to convince me to come out with you tonight, you'd be a shoo in for valedictorian."

It was Seth's turn to slug Ryan. Only he came away shaking his fist, and stuffing it in his mouth to ease the pain. Ryan's arms were rock solid.

"You will do anything to get me to go with you."

Seth shook his head. "You were playing me?"

Ryan's laughter slowed. "Some."

"I meant it anyway, you know. They're more than just your guardians." Tired of the serious talk, Seth grabbed Ryan's sleeve. "Come on. You're coming with me."

"Okay. Okay."

Seth tiptoed down the stairs with Ryan at his heels. At the bottom of the staircase they could hear Julie and Caleb arguing softly from the other room. Seth turned and held his finger to his lips, indicating to Ryan that he should keep quiet. Ryan rolled his eyes. Seth thought he held the gold medal in stealth.

They reached the end of the hall and Seth peered out from behind the wall and looked both ways before proceeding forward and waving Ryan ahead. They walked in exaggerated silence, stopping every few minutes to check ahead of them and behind them to make sure they were in the clear.

Ten minutes later Ryan was crammed in the back seat of Summer's silver BMW convertible. He turned away while Seth and Summer made up for lost time.

"Is it terrible at your grandpa's?" Summer pulled away from Seth's embrace and tugged down her shirt which was riding up.

"Julie made us study all afternoon."

"Cohen, you studied?"

"No. But I watched Ryan study all afternoon."

Summer glanced over her shoulder. "Chino, Julie Cooper told you what to do and you listened."

Ryan sank into the seat. "Don't rub it in." He drummed his fingers on the door handle. "So who's this girl you're setting me up with?" His stomach muscles clenched. He wondered if it was a bad idea. He didn't have much experience with blind dates. In the past there had never been a need, but from all his TV viewing and reading he knew that they were generally a bad idea.

In truth, Ryan was mostly interested in kissing and groping and something more. He wasn't sure if Summer was aware of his priorities and she probably didn't much hang out that sort of girl anymore, even though when he had first met her, Ryan was certain Summer was the type of girl to jump into bed with random guys.

"Gigi is great," Summer gushed from the driver's seat. "You'll really like her. She's gorgeous and nice."

Gorgeous and nice did not sound promising. Gigi, the name at least, did. The name itself sounded sexy.

From his dark corner in the front, Seth groaned. "Sorry, Ryan. I didn't realize."

Ryan smirked. Damned if you did and damned if you don't.

Ryan decided next time he would put more faith in Summer. No, Gigi didn't look like a girl who would go to bed with him on the first date. He wasn't even sure if he would get much action on the first date, but she was gorgeous. She was sitting alone in a booth at the back of the diner. Her head was bent over a menu and her black corn silk hair fell over her light chocolate brown face. The top of her head was done up in tiny braids, but the rest fell loose to her shoulders.

"Not bad, Ryan." Seth elbowed his brother lightly in the stomach. "Summer sure does have good taste."

"Keep your tongue in your mouth, Seth. You're girl is five feet from you. This one's mine."

"Go ahead." Seth bowed slightly and held out his hand, indicating for Ryan to move forward.

They reached the table and Summer slid into the booth, across from Gigi. "This is Seth, my guy, and this is his brother Ryan."

"Hey." Ryan smiled shyly and slid in next to her, making sure to give Gigi her space.

"Hey," she smiled back.

"So, you go to Harbor?"

Gigi shook her head. "No. Pacific."

Ryan looked from Gigi to Summer. "So how do you two know each other?"

"My dad shares a practice with Dr. Roberts. Summer and I have known each other since we were little kids."

He nodded dumbly. Ryan's eyes slid helplessly to Seth. He wasn't sure what to say next. Conversation wasn't his strong suit. He grabbed a menu from the middle of the table and scanned the selection, even though he pretty much knew it by heart.

Caleb knocked lightly on the door to the guestroom and waited for an answer. When none came after a silent count to thirty he knocked again. Still no answer. He tried the doorknob and opened the door. The room was empty.

He frowned. The house was big and Seth and Ryan were free to roam the place, but he suspected that Seth had taken matters into his own hands and left despite Caleb's warning. He ambled towards his bedroom to find his wife.

"Julie, have you seen the boys?"

She was sitting at her vanity table, combing her hair. "No. They're not in their room?"

"No." Caleb dug into his pocket. "I'm not going to search this monstrosity to find out where they are. I'm just going to try Seth on his phone."

"Seth, is that your phone?" Summer whined as the theme from the X-Men movie played. "It's always going off when we're out!"

"What can I say? My public demands me." He looked at the top of the phone and immediately sent it to voicemail. It was his grandfather.

"Who was it?" Ryan asked.

Seth shrugged. "No one important. So Gigi, what sort of music do you like?"

Gigi smiled brightly and started to list her favorite bands and songs.

"Dammit," grumbled Caleb. "It's on voicemail."

"Try Ryan's phone," Julie suggested.

"The boy has one?"

Julie rolled his eyes. "Kirsten and Sandy give him everything that Seth has. They want to keep tabs on him too."

Caleb shrugged. "Do you know the number?"

"I have it somewhere."

Julie went to find her purse and rummaged around until she found a tiny piece of scrap paper. She held it up triumphantly. "Here it is." She read the number off to Caleb and he dialed.

"Sorry," Ryan mumbled, embarrassed as his phone went off. He wondered who it was. He dug into his pocket and pulled out the metallic phone and fumbled with it as it nearly fell out of his hand. His face turned a deep shade of red, but it paled immediately when he saw Caleb's number. "Seth, it's your Grandpa."

"Don't answer it."

"I have to."

"No. You don't. And how did Grandpa get your number anyway?"

"I don't know. But I'm answering. What if your parents are looking for us?"

Gigi's eyes bounced back and forth from Seth to Ryan unable to disguise her confusion. Summer leaned over and whispered an explanation. Gigi's lips turned up into an amused smile. She turned her body towards Ryan and waited to see what he would do.

Ryan flipped the phone open just as Seth jumped across the table, trying to get it of his hands.

"Hello."

"Ryan." Caleb's voice was crisp and sharp. "Where are you and my grandson?"

"Um. Well." Ryan's eyes looked beseechingly at Seth, who just leaned back against the seat, his arms crossed and an accusing look on his face.

"Come on, spit it out boy. Are you even in the house?"

"Well, you see..."

"You left the house? After I very clearly said that you were to stay?" Caleb barked.

"Um…"

"If you and Seth are not back here in twenty minutes I will call Kirsten. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal," Ryan spat out the first coherent word in his conversation with Caleb. He shut the phone and started to repeat what Caleb said, but Seth held up his hand.

"It's a cell and Grandpa was yelling. I heard everything." He sighed. "Summer, will you please take us back?" he asked in a defeated voice.


	5. 5

_I'm so disappointed that the O.C. was not on. Well, we won't be seeing the Cohen men + 1 in Miami, but I wrote most of this chapter in Miami. So hopefully it will make up for it. __Thanks again to Chazper for betaing. (Is that how you write it?) And I fiddled with it after she read through, so all mistakes are min._

_And I don't own the O.C. or any of its characters... Though Gigi is all mine. An aside, I went to see the horse track in Miami. And my friend bet on a horse, I didn't notice the name until after, because the horse was wearing purple and it's my friend's favorite color. Well, I should have bet on the horse, because it came in first. And what was its name? Gigi's Charm._

* * *

The car ride back to the mansion was quiet. Gigi had opted to come along and sat with Ryan in the back seat after Summer had promised to bring her back to her own car after they dropped Ryan and Seth at mansion. There was plenty of space available in the back seat, but Ryan could swear Gigi kept purposely running her hands by his thigh. It certainly didn't fit with the wholesome, shy image he had built up in his mind. He inched towards her, closing the already small gap between them, and brazenly rested his arm on her shoulders. She turned and smiled coyly, relaxing into the crook of his arm and Ryan knew he had made the right move. If only he wasn't about to face Caleb's firing squad. Caleb was sure to lay all the blame on Ryan, the thug and juvenile delinquent Kirsten had taken into her home.

He was surprised when the car slowed and Summer announced that they had arrived. Reluctantly, Ryan took back his arm and started to get out of the car.

"So Gigi." He placed his palm flat on the roof of the car and ducked his head so he could see inside the back seat. "Maybe, when um, I get out on parole we could meet up again?" Though he suspected if Kirsten and Sandy found out about half of what went on during the weekend, parole would be a long time coming.

Her mouth broke into a grin. "Sure. That sounds great. I'll let Summer pass on my number."

They shyly waved good-bye and Ryan followed Seth into the house.

Caleb was waiting for them in the entrance hall. His arms were crossed and his face wore his perpetual scowl. "Follow me," he barked.

Ouch, thought Ryan. He'd never really thought of Caleb as the parental type. He always figured that Kirsten had answered to her mom growing up, but now he wasn't so sure. At the very least, he imagined if she had gotten into any big trouble, Caleb was a force to be reckoned with.

Caleb waved his hand towards the couch and ordered Seth and Ryan to sit. At least they'd be comfortable thought Ryan. The Cohens did most of the disciplining in the kitchen, either standing or in the uncomfortable bar stools. He sank into the chocolate colored leather couch, stole a quick glance at Seth, who didn't look too concerned and immediately bowed his head.

Ryan waited for the yelling to begin, but Caleb said nothing. He looked up through his shaggy bangs and noticed Caleb was pacing back and forth, his hands clasped behind his back. It was having its affect on Seth, who sat wringing his hands, his eyes darting back and forth between Ryan and his grandfather.

Finally Caleb started. "I don't know what's gotten into you." He turned to Seth, ignoring Ryan. "Did I not tell you to stay home tonight?"

"Come on Grandpa. It's boring here. You didn't really expect us to stick around?"

"Boring?" Caleb exploded. "Boring? First of all, young man, there's more to do here than at the – the Tackle Shop. Where is that infernal place you're always hanging out?"

"The Bait Shop," Seth offered.

"Yes. Yes. The Bait Shop." Caleb continued to rant. "There's a swimming pool. There's a pool table, a game room, and more than one computer with Internet access. For goodness sake, I bought you a playstation just so you wouldn't go into withdrawal while you stayed here. I'm sure you could have found something to occupy your time. What you wanted was some time with your girlfriend, after your parents grounded you and after I expressly forbade it."

"Come on Grandpa, I didn't think you'd hold me to the whole Mom grounding us thing."

Caleb shook his head. Ryan tried to signal Seth to just stop before he dug them further into a hole.

"What about you, Ryan? What's your excuse? Do you do everything Seth tells you to do or do you have your own mind?"

Ryan's head snapped up. Caleb wasn't blaming the entire thing on him.

"Can you talk or are you always such a simpleton?"

"Grandpa, be nice."

Caleb just glared at his grandson. But when he turned back to Ryan, he didn't add any more insults. He just said, "Well?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Nichol. We should have obeyed your rules. I'm – we're sorry."

Caleb growled. "Should have. Could have. But didn't."

"Are you going to tell Mom and Dad about tonight?"

"That has you scared, doesn't it?" A wicked smile stretched on his lips. He knew that his daughter ruled her house with an iron fist when she took her gloves off. He knew that even though she complained that Sandy was liberal and soft with the boys, that he too had a good grip on discipline. Seth and Ryan did not want his daughter and son-in-law to find out about their antics. "We'll see. It'll depend on tonight and tomorrow." Caleb was a shrewd businessman. He saw his chance at blackmail and he was going to use every card up his sleeves. "Tonight, you stay in your rooms. Read. Study. I don't care. But you are not to talk on the phone, watch TV or go on the computer."

"What? I don't have any homework!" Seth complained. "Let me at least go online."

"Seth," Ryan warned. He would do anything to keep Caleb from giving them away. "It's okay, Mr. Nichol, we'll do whatever you say." Ryan's stomach tightened. Seth was mad.

Caleb ignored Seth and Ryan's interruption. "Tomorrow, I have to take a meeting at the Newport Group. Julie scheduled a day at the spa, so you're both coming with me. Obviously, I need to keep close tabs on the two of you and can't trust you to stay here yourself."

"What are we going to do at the Newport Group all day?" Seth's voice was nearly a whine. Ryan wanted to punch him, but thought Caleb wouldn't see it as playful and be reminded of the Ryan who had burned down the model home.

"Don't worry. There's plenty of work for you to do. My assistant has been begging me to hire some interns so she can work on her files and other odds and ends."

"And we have to be there all day?" Seth asked.

"All day."

"Come on, Grandpa."

"It's either that, or I get on the phone right now and tell Kirsten and Sandy that you snuck out of the house again."

"What time do we have to be up?" Seth asked, sporting a false smile.

"My meeting is at nine a.m. So we leave hear at eight thirty sharp. Now go up to your room. And G-d help you if try and sneak out again."

"Yes, sir. We'll be there," Ryan offered. All he could think was that they had gotten off lightly. He'd spent the day with Kirsten at the Newport Group once and it had been enjoyable. Granted, it had been with Kirsten and not Caleb and he hadn't been on punishment, but there was a lot going on there, even on the weekends.

Up in their rooms, Seth flopped on the bed. He ran his fingers through his hair. "Sorry, Ryan. I didn't think we'd get caught."

"You never do. Let's just hope your Grandpa keeps his word and doesn't tell your parents."

"Here's hoping."

Ryan groaned when the alarm clock rang at eight a.m. Sunday morning. It was cruel and unusual punishment to wake up so early on a Sunday morning. But he knew that things could get a lot worse if they didn't do what Caleb ordered. He looked over at Seth, whose head was buried under the pillow, trying to block out the sounds of the morning's weather report (sunny and clear) and reached over to the bed that was perpendicular to his to tug at the covers. "Come on, we've got to get ready."

"I need coffee."

"I'm sure we can find some downstairs. Come on, Seth. We can't get your Grandpa any madder at us than he already is."

Seth rolled over. "Aren't there laws protecting children from abusive adults?"

Ryan grinned. He knew Seth was kidding. But it was the glib comments like these where the chasm between Seth and Ryan's childhood was made obvious. Seth had no idea what real abuse was.

By the time Ryan came out of the restroom, his teeth brushed and his face scrubbed, Seth was sitting up in bed one foot raised in the hope of getting it into his pants, but his eyes were closed. "It's Sunday. The day of rest."

"I thought that was Saturday in your faith."

"That's the joy of being a child of an interfaith marriage. I get two days of rest. Saturday for Dad's side of the family and Sunday from Mom's side."

"Caleb doesn't seem to be the Church going type." Ryan threw Seth's polo shirt at him. "Get dressed, before Caleb comes to rake our asses over some more coals."

"Ouch." Seth rubbed his rear end. "That's a visual I do not need."

They were down in the kitchen sipping a cup of coffee by eight twenty five a.m. Caleb walked in, dressed in an expensive looking three piece suit, nodding approvingly at Seth and Ryan. "It's good to see you can get yourselves up." Caleb poured coffee into his mug and took a sip. "The car will be out front in three minutes. Are you boys ready?"

Ryan nodded.

Seth said, "I will be. I just need to take a leak."

Caleb snorted in disgust. He stared at Ryan as soon as Seth's back disappeared. "I wonder, is Seth's behavior and vulgarity just typical teen rebellion, or is this your influence?"

Ryan stared, unsure how to answer. He knew Seth hadn't always been like this, but he surely Caleb didn't believe that it was Ryan who had planted the seeds of Seth's teen rebellion. Ryan had grown up knowing to use his words wisely, aware that getting too smart with adults the way Seth did, was a bad idea. Most times he had unwisely answered back it had just earned him a slap or a punch. Seth's manner reeked of a child who knew only unconditional love, even from his gruff, overbearing grandfather.

Caleb squinted, studying Ryan. "You don't talk very much. You don't try to defend yourself against me anymore."

Ryan buried his nose and mouth into his large ceramic coffee mug. "I did that once," he mumbled. "You landed in the hospital with a heart attack."

Caleb guffawed. "As much as I don't like you, I'm finding what to like." Caleb set his empty mug on the counter and walked to the door with two long strides. "Seth Ezekiel," he shouted. "The car is here. Tell your girlfriend you'll speak to her later, and get off the phone. We're going."

Seth scurried into the room, his face flushed red, as he tried to surreptitiously hide his phone in the palm of his hand.

Ryan had not expected Caleb to leave them alone the moment they entered the Newport Group. He had introduced them to his assistant Maria and had asked if the conference room was ready. Maria had informed him that the Board was waiting for him in the conference room, handed him some files and a few phone messages, and Caleb left without even saying good-bye.

"So what are the two of you up to?" Maria asked. She was young, not much older than Hailey, but her dress and demeanor made it seem like she was in the same age category as Kirsten.

Ryan shrugged. "Mr. Nichol said we were to help you."

Maria laughed. "Well, I don't need any help right now. Why don't you go into Mr. Nichol's office and hang out. His computer is on. You can connect to the Internet. Otherwise, I'm not sure what else there is to do."

"You'll let us know if you need anything?" Ryan didn't want Caleb to get angry that they weren't doing what they were supposed to do.

"I will. But right now, letting me do my work is the biggest help I could have."

Ryan followed Seth into Caleb's office. It was twice the size of Kirsten's office and simply decorated. Architectural plans were framed on the wall. Family photos dotted the end tables. There was Kirsten as a teenager, holding Hailey; a toddler. There was Julie and Caleb at their wedding. Seth standing next to Caleb, squinting into the sun, his hair tousled by the wind. A flat screen monitor and computer sat on the desk. It looked to Ryan like it had never been used.

Seth flopped onto the couch and pulled out his phone. "Cohen," he heard Summer bark. "Call me back at a decent hour. I told you before, I'm still sleeping."

"Just listen for a minute. My grandfather's going to be in a meeting all day. Why don't you pick up Gigi later on and swing on by. It'll make the day go faster."

"I'll think about it," she said. "When I'm awake."

"Come on snookums," Seth pleaded. "Have pity on us. "We're dying here and if we dare sneak out again my parents are going to hear about it. If that happens, I'll be grounded until I'm thirty. Then all we're going to have is a few stolen moments between classes in the janitor's supply closet."

"Seth, if you ever call me snookums again the only thing you'll have in the supply closet is some alone time with your hand." She sighed heavily into the phone. "But I'll be there later and ask Gigi if she can come."

Seth hung up, grinning.

"You think that was a good idea?"

"Grandpa didn't say we couldn't have guests."

"It's logic like that that got us here in the first place."

"Whatever." Seth watched Ryan walking around the office, studying the plans on the wall. "That one's the mall. At least part of it. It's been in every office Grandpa's had since the project."

"You came here a lot?"

"As a kid. Mom would take me in. Grandpa insisted I come by." Seth groaned and rolled over onto his side. "I'm so bored.

"I'm sure Summer will be here soon enough." Ryan didn't have to say anything else because Seth's cell phone ran.

Seth looked at the number and rolled his eyes. It wasn't Summer that was for sure. He watched Seth flip open the phone.

"Hi Mom."

"Hey, honey. I hope I didn't wake you."

"Oh no. We've been up for ages. We're with Grandpa at his office."

Ryan started waving his hands at Seth, making threatening motions. Was Seth mad? Kirsten would certainly know something was up if they were at the Newport Group with Caleb.

"You are?" Ryan heard Kirsten ask.

"Yeah." He pushed off Ryan, who was trying to grab the phone away. "I hope it's okay. I know we were grounded. But it was so boring and Grandpa thought this would be okay."

"What are you doing there?" Even though it was muffled Ryan could hear Kirsten's dubious expression.

"Well," Seth said with a heavy sigh. "We were supposed to help Grandpa's assistant Maria with her files and errands. But she has nothing for us to do. So we would have been better off staying at Grandpa's."

"Okay. Well, I'm sure you can find something to do. How's Ryan."

"Great. Chomping at the bit to get at the phone."

"Then let me talk to him. I love you," she called before Seth could hand it over.

"Love you too, Mom. Tell Dad I said hi."

Seth gave the phone to Ryan, covering his head with his arms as Ryan made a move to whack him yet again.

"Mom's he's hitting me again," Seth shouted at the phone.

"Hi Kirsten."

She laughed. "What did Seth say?"

"Oh, that he misses you. When are you and Sandy coming back?"

"Early evening. I need to meet with these San Francisco people one more time and then Sandy and I will fly back. We'll pick you up at my Dad's."

"Have a safe trip back."

"Thanks. How are you doing? Are you as bored as Seth? Is my father giving you a hard time? If he is—"

"He's not," Ryan cut her off. "Just come home soon. Okay?"

"I miss you too, honey."

"Is Sandy there?"

"He's out foraging for Dunkin' Donuts Coffee."

Ryan smiled. He knew that it was Kirsten's favorite coffee. "Well, tell him I said hi."

"I will. Love you."

"I love you too," he mumbled, the red rushing to his cheeks. He closed the phone and tossed it back.

"Love you," Seth teased in a high-pitched voice and made loud smacking kissing noises. "Come home soon, Mommy. I miss you."

Ryan narrowed his eyes and stalked to Seth's side to cuff his ear.

"You've got to stop doing that, man. I'm going to fight back one day."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

Seth reached out to hit Ryan back, but Ryan sidestepped him. Seth sat up on the couch and tried again, but Ryan evaded him again. So Seth got up from the couch and started to chase Ryan around the office. He kept reaching out to get Ryan, but Ryan was too fast. Seth was breathless, but they were both laughing as they darted around the desk, chairs, conference tables, and couches that crowded Caleb's office.

It was just as Seth knocked down a vase of fresh flowers, water splashing onto the carpet, the vase thankfully remaining in one piece, that Maria stormed into the room and demanded, "What on earth is going on in here?"


	6. 6

_I'm so sorry to keep everyone waiting. RL sort of just got in the way. Thanks again for all the encouraging reviews. And a big big thank you to **chazper** for betaing and being so encouraging as I write each chapter. All mistakes are still mine.  
I don't own the O.C. or any of its characters. Gigi still belongs to me..._

* * *

Seth froze in his tracks. Ryan, on bended knee, was right beside him. Both were breathing heavily.

"Well?" Maria demanded.

"We were just fooling around," Seth explained.

Maria shook her head. "You're behaving like children." She waved a hand towards the flowers on the floor. "Your grandfather is going to be livid. Did that vase break?"

Seth scrambled to the corner of the room, where there was a mini bar, hoping to find paper towels. He stole a glance at his grandfather's assistant and for the first time realized that Maria was trying hard to bury a smirk. He was tempted to call her on it and let Ryan in on the secret, but decided to play along.

"Find something productive to do or I'm going to interrupt your grandfather's meeting to let him know what's going on."

"We didn't break the vase," Ryan offered lamely as he gathered the tulips and put them back in. "We'll clean it up. Mr. Nichol won't find anything disturbed. We swear."

Maria nodded her head. "Just settle down. Okay? This is an office, not a playground."

"We will. I promise," Ryan said again. "Um, is there something we can do for you?" Ryan widened his eyes hopefully, wanting to get back into Maria's good graces.

"Right." She shook her finger at Ryan remembering why she had come in to the office. "Right. I came in here to ask you what you guys wanted for lunch. Mr. Nichol called from the conference room saying that they'd be working right through. I'm ordering in."

They glanced through the menus she gave them and told her what they wanted. Ryan bit his lip as he saw Maria's quirk her brow in disbelief. Seth was ordering for a small army. He knew it was for the girls. Seth didn't miss the look though and hastily explained he was a growing boy.

"Oh," Maria said as she was about to exit the room. "There are two young ladies waiting to see you. Should I send them in?"

Seth nearly pounced. "Yes." A restraining hand from Ryan kept him from tackling the secretary at the door.

Summer slunk into the room and only acknowledged Ryan's greeting with a brief nod of her head. She made a bee line for Seth and wrapped her arms around them. Gigi's face flushed as Seth and Summer slithered into a corner of the room.

"I guess they've been missing each other." Ryan scratched the back of his head. "Do you want to sit?" He waved a hand at the leather sofa.

"What about Seth's Grandfather?"

"Oh. His grandfather's going to be holed up in a meeting all day. I don't think we have to worry."

The corners of Gigi's mouth turned up into a coy smile. "We should go sit. And um… get to know each other better."

"Yeah. We should."

Ryan took her by the hand and gently led her to the couch. Their eyes flitted around the room, landing on Seth and Summer, who were too busy to even come up for air. Gigi was the first to avert her gaze.

"They don't waste time."

"Not the way Seth tells it."

She laughed and then looked down at her short skirt, which was riding up, exposing her mocha colored thighs. "Summer likes him a lot."

"I'm pretty sure the feeling is mutual." Ryan wondered why Gigi was becoming shy all of a sudden. She certainly hadn't been shy in the back seat of Summer's car. Frankly, all he wanted was to do what Seth and Summer were doing.

Gigi threw another look over her shoulder. Seth and Summer were a tangle of limbs, heavy breathing and the occasional grunt. "You don't think they're going to have sex while we're in the room?"

Ryan's face blanched. "I hope not."

Gigi giggled at his horrified expression. "It's not like you've never done it." He heard the question in her voice as she ran a finger along his collar.

"Not with an audience." He looked down at her hand and followed its path up and down his collar and inching towards the base of his neck. She curled the ends of his hair around her finger until she pulled Ryan's head back.

Gigi leaned forward and kissed Ryan's neck. She kissed him slowly, carefully, barely grazing her lips against his skin, sending goose bumps up and down his spine. Ryan turned his body sideways so he was facing Gigi and put his arms around her waist, leaning in to catch her lips between his. He sucked them hard, pushing his tongue into her mouth.

Gigi's hands snaked around his torso, rubbing them up and down, and letting the right hand slide down to his torso. He felt his pants tighten. He pushed out the nagging thoughts that he hardly knew Gigi and had barely made conversation with her and he shouldn't be doing this and instead wondered where he could find a room alone or if Caleb had a bathroom in his office, because if Gigi was willing and able, he was not going to refuse her.

He pushed Gigi down on the sofa so that he could kiss her from on top. His hand slid into her blouse and he fingered her lacy bra, fumbling to find the snaps in the back. But her hands shoved his away and Ryan tried not to get frustrated and reminded himself that good things came to those who wait.

He didn't hear the door creak open or the loud clearing of a throat. But he did hear Caleb's voice booming, "What in tarnation? Seth! Ryan!"

Ryan sat up abruptly, banging his head on the low hanging bookshelf right about the couch. He rubbed his head as Gigi sat up, trying to discreetly straighten her blouse. Seth and Summer were pulling apart, extricating their limbs from one another. Seth's hair was tousled. Summer's blouse was unbuttoned, her lipstick smeared. Her normally snow-white complexion was a deep shade of crimson.

"Grandpa," Seth choked out. "Did your meeting end already?"

"Don't change the subject Seth Ezekiel."

"This is one subject I'm not sure I want to discuss with you."

"Nor I with you." Caleb took a long stride bringing him into the center of the room. He looked around, shaking his head in bewilderment. "Girls, I imagine you have someplace else to be."

"Actually," Summer started to say, but Gigi cut her off.

She jumped off the couch and grabbed her purse, which she had dropped on the floor beside her feet. "Actually," she finished for Summer, "My dad's expecting me at the country club. Since you drove me over here Summer, I'll need a ride."

"Oh. Right." Summer caught on, remembering that this was more than just being embarrassed at being caught. It was more about Seth and Ryan getting caught with guests when they were supposed to be on punishment. She scrambled up, grabbed her purse, and started to lean in for a good-bye kiss, but thought better of it when Caleb cleared his throat.

Ryan swallowed when it was just the three of them. Caleb's face was a deep shade of red, to the top of his balding head and the tip of his ears. He stalked to his desk and rummaged through one of the draws until he extricated the file he had apparently come looking for. The silence chewed on Ryan's intestines. Why wasn't Caleb talking or yelling?

Finally, Caleb talked. His voice was controlled. Steady. It was just above a whisper. "I'm going to return to my meeting." He glanced at his watch. "I should be about one more hour. In that hour you will not move. Not even to take a leak."

"Don't say leak, Grandpa."

"You will not speak." Caleb looked pointedly at Seth. "You will only take enough breathes to ensure that you live. Is that understood?"

Ryan nodded. Seth started to protest, but an angry glare from Caleb shut him up.

"Maria will baby sit. When my meeting is over, I will try to figure out what I'm going to tell your parents. I must say, the two have you have been trying this weekend. I didn't have this much trouble with Hailey when she was your age and we all know your aunt was a wild child."

Seth arched his brow and Ryan could tell he was busting at the seams to say something. He sighed with relief as Caleb retreated and Seth's mouth was still sealed shut. He seemed to be heeding his grandfather's warning to the letter. Ryan checked the clock. Seth was surely going to break his own record on the length of time he had kept quiet… he probably had already.

"We're in for it." Ryan was the first to break the silence. He got up and paced the floor, his hands clasped behind his back. "Sandy and Kirsten aren't going to let us go anywhere after this. We're going to be on house arrest and Stallone marathons until we puke."

"He's not going to tell Mom and Dad. He won't want to admit failure."

"Why are you being so flip?" Ryan glared at Seth. "This isn't going to just go away. Your grandpa was really mad. I should have never listened to you."

"Take it easy, Ryan."

"I need to grow a spine. Ever since I moved in with your family, I've just been following all of your schemes, even though I know they're stupid."

"Stupid? Come on—"

"Going to that party in Long Beach was a dumb idea. Going to TJ was a dumber idea. Fake I.Ds and prostitutes in Las Vegas. Sneaking out of the house," Ryan ticked off each incident with another finger. "No matter that I thought it was a bad idea, I still did it. Well no more, Seth."

"So it's all my fault?" Seth brought his knees to his chest.

"No. It's my fault for listening and following. I know a dumb idea when I hear it."

"I didn't realize you felt that way."

Ryan sighed and fell back into the couch. Seth looked like a whipped puppy. His tousled hair fell into his eyes and he looked younger than his seventeen years.

"I just hate having Sandy and Kirsten mad at us or disappointed," he amended.

"They'll get over it."

"Yeah. I know. But you know…"

"Look, I'll make sure Grandpa doesn't tell Mom and Dad."

"How?"

Seth chewed his lip thoughtfully. "Begging won't help. And Grandpa's pretty angry." He snapped his fingers. "The way to get to Grandpa is to embarrass him."

"And how do you propose to do that?" Ryan didn't think Caleb Nichol was easily embarrassed. He told Seth as much. "I mean, he married a woman half his age and everyone knows that his wife is no saint."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of it. You can watch and learn from the master."

Ryan chewed on his thumbnail, wondering if he should put his faith in Seth. Could things get any worse? He hoped not. He knew they were in it pretty deep. He peeked at Seth from under his bangs. Seth looked pretty determined. There was probably no stopping him and once again, Ryan would have to go along. He hoped for once that whatever Seth was scheming would work.

Caleb returned an hour later an irritated expression all over his face. Ryan wondered if it was because the meeting had gone badly or if it was just the thought of dealing with them that made Caleb looked sour.

"Grandpa, can we talk alone?" Seth didn't wait for Caleb to say anything.

"What is it, Seth?" Caleb growled.

"It's sort of private."

"I can sit with Maria," Ryan offered, playing along with Seth's mysterious plan.

Caleb curtly nodded his head and Ryan slunk out of the room. He stood as close to the door as he dared, hoping to catch the whole conversation. Maria eyed him strangely, but he just put his finger to his lips and motioned at the office to indicate that what he really wanted was to hear what was going on inside. It was his funeral too, he thought. He had a right to hear.

Seth scratched his bare arm and tried to stare down Caleb. It didn't work. He blinked first and pulled his gaze down to the floor. He vaulted up from the floor, where he had stayed ever since Summer had left and inched closer to his grandfather.

"First of all, I'm sorry about Summer and her friend. I didn't know they were coming," he lied. "She surprised us and well, I couldn't turn her away."

"Why not?" demanded Caleb.

"Come on Grandpa, I'm seventeen."

Caleb did something between a snort and a grunt and Seth knew his grandfather's anger was dissipating. Could Caleb really remember what it was like to be seventeen or did he have a soft spot for his only grandson, Seth wondered. He knew Caleb would never come to think of Ryan as a grandson, even if he accepted him as Kirsten and Sandy's son.

"What did you need to talk about Seth? I was just about to call your parents." Caleb had a sheaf of papers and envelopes in his hand that he was sorting through.

Seth ignored the last comment and sat down on the sofa Ryan had abandoned. He hoped that when he was finished, Caleb wouldn't remember to tell Sandy or Kirsten about any of this. Though he had appeared all confident to Ryan, he really wasn't that sure of himself. But he had to give it his best try.

"Well, you see Grandpa, there are certain things I can't discuss with my dad and I was hoping, since you walked in on me anyway, I could you know, talk to you. Man to man."

Caleb threw down his stack of papers and sat in a chair across from Seth. He leaned back and crossed his leg. "What do you mean, Seth?"

Certain that he had his grandfather's attention; Seth leaned in and lowered his voice in a conspirator's whisper. He caught Ryan's eye through the crack in the office door.

"I know it was sort of obvious, what I was doing today, with Summer."

Caleb blushed.

"When you're with a girl – I mean woman – like that, I mean, don't you get excited?"

"You don't?" Caleb knitted his brow together. "Seth, are you trying to tell me you're gay?"

"No!" He nearly shouted. "No! It's not that. I like women. Really, I do. It's just that when you're kissing them, and doing what dad, in the most embarrassing sex talk ever, told me was foreplay, don't you get excited?" He waved at his crotch. "Like, ready."

The top of Caleb's head was turning from a deep shade of red to purple. Seth wondered if it was safe to do this to a man with a heart condition.

"So you mean," Caleb spluttered. "You —"

Seth lowered his voice again. "I can't get it up." He was going to burn in hell for doing this to his aging grandfather, he thought, and for lying. He was virile as a young chick in heat. If chicks went into heat.

"I was thinking, being that your wife is Julie Cooper, well maybe you had something to share with me. Some of those pills…"

"Pills?"

"Viagra."

Caleb ducked his head. "Seth, you should have this conversation with Sandy."

"I can't tell Dad." He raised his voice with high-pitched indignation.

"Nonsense." Seth realized Caleb was slowly recovering, donning his aura of multi-millionaire and the richest and most powerful man in Newport instead of befuddled grandfather. "Sandy's as open-minded as they come. Kirsten called while I was in the boardroom. Their plane's on time. They should be coming to pick you up within the hour."

"So, you think I should talk to dad then?"

"Give him a moment to recover, but yes, talk to him about this. This is really his domain."

"If you're sure."

"I'm certain." Caleb stood up and retreated to his desk. He seemed glad to put as much distance as he could between himself and his grandson. "He looked down at the pile of folders on his desk and poked through them. "Now go find Ryan and tell him we're going home to wait for your parents."

"Yes sir." Seth stood. "And Grandpa, thanks for the advice."

"Whatever," Caleb grumbled. "Get going."

Seth stepped out of the office and nearly bumped into Ryan. "You heard?"

Ryan mutely nodded.

"You think it worked?"

Ryan shook his head. "I don't know. But I nearly busted a gut stifling my laughter."

Seth rolled his tongue in his mouth. "We need to get going. I guess we'll find out what happens when the 'rents come back."

Ryan nodded. What would happen next was as unpredictable as his sidekick beside him.


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for all the wonderful supporting review. In time for Dulcey's birthday, here's the conclusion of her challenge. Thanks again to Chazper for her encouraging words and fantastic proffreading, especially this chapter. I was in a serious fog while writing this.

And I'm under no delusions. The O.C. does not belong to me.

* * *

Ryan threw all of his things into his overnight bag while Seth sat on the corner of his bed, replaying his earlier conversation with Caleb, describing each of his grandfather's reactions. Ryan only listened with half an ear even though, for a change, he was actually interested in Seth's tale. He had only been able to hear Caleb's reactions and hadn't been able to see very well through the slit in the door. But Ryan was distracted with packing. He couldn't find all of his things, which was strange, since he hadn't brought much, but it seemed like half his stuff had been thrown about the room.

"Seth, I really don't need a play by play," Ryan said irritably

"Come on man, it was funny."

Ryan smirked. "It was one of your more inspired moments."

"I told you, I am the master."

"That's yet to be seen. There's still enough rope to hang ourselves. And your grandfather may recover before your parents return."

"True. But he seems to have lost the momentum."

"We won't know until Sandy and Kirsten come home. My advice," Ryan threw a wifebeater at Seth. "Pack now so we can make a mad dash for the car. The less time your parents and Caleb spend together the less likely all will be revealed."

"What's the worse that can happen?"

"Do you really want to find out? I mean, your parents sent us here, because they didn't think they could trust us on our own, even though Julie and Caleb can't stand me."

"Right. How much worse can it get?"

"When you put it that way?" Ryan found a pair of Seth's boxers among his things. Scrunching his nose in disgust, sincerely hoping they were clean and fresh, he picked them up, using a pencil and tossed them in Seth's direction. "Seth Ezekiel pack."

"Hey!" Seth pouted. "You can't call me that! Only Mom and Dad can call me that. And they only do that when they're seriously pissed."

Ryan just wiggled his brows and smirked. "Seth Ezekiel."

"Don't. Call. Me. That."

"Seth Ezekiel," Ryan teased. He backed up an inch as Seth got up from the bed and came towards Ryan. Ryan couldn't resist. "Seth Ezekiel."

"That does it."

And they were off, climbing over the beds, jumping to the floor and pulling the linen along with them. They tripped over the flat sheets which tangled around their ankles. Seth tackled Ryan to the floor and tried to pin him down. But Ryan, who was shorter than Seth, but much more muscular, quickly got the upper hand and was on top of Seth. He pinned Seth's arms over his head.

"Seth Ezekiel."

Seth banged his heels on the floor. "Don't." He giggled and tried to wiggle out from under Ryan's grasp, but Ryan was too strong. "Help," he yelped.

"Is everything okay in here?" Julie entered the room. She stopped in her tracks as she surveyed the scene. "Oh. I didn't know. I'll leave you both alone."

Ryan thought his face would turn a permanent shade of red. He quickly let go of Seth and allowed him to scramble up to a sitting position.

"Oh no." Seth groaned. They exchanged looks and burst into a fit of laughter. "I hope she doesn't talk to Grandpa, because after today, I'll never be able to convince him that I'm not gay."

"As long as he doesn't tell Summer."

"Comforting, man. You're just plain comforting."

Two minutes later there was a hesitant knock on their door. "Ryan. Seth." It was Julie again, but she stayed on the other side of the door. "Sandy and Kirsten called. They'll be here in five minutes."

"Thanks," Ryan called out. "We're just going to finish packing. We'll be downstairs in a minute."

Suddenly, Seth was a blur of motion, as he scrambled around the room grabbing all of his things and haphazardly throwing them into his overnight bag. He didn't bother to check if the stuff he was taking belonged to him or Ryan, figuring they could sort that out at home. He just wanted to make sure he could open the door say hi to his parents and as per Ryan's advice make a mad dash for the car.

He only heard the tail end of Ryan's words. "….Don't be so obvious when they come. They'll know we're hiding something right off, even if Caleb and Julie don't say anything."

"Huh?" Seth looked up.

"You look guilty of something. We have to play it cool."

"You know me, Ryan. I'm Mr. Cool. Don't worry about me."

Ryan sighed. They were screwed.

They bounded down the steps, their bags bobbing up and down beside them and found a place for them to rest near the front door. There was no sign of Sandy and Kirsten and they didn't see Caleb and Julie anywhere, so Ryan and Seth decided they might as well sit and watch television to kill the time. Seth took control of the remote and flipped through the channels absently, not settling on any one program for more than five minutes. Not even reruns of Summer's favorite show _The Valley._

"What's taking them so long?" Seth asked. "They should have been there already."

Ryan shrugged. "Traffic?"

"I guess." Seth squirmed in his seat. "Maybe their luggage got lost."

"I thought they only took hand luggage."

Seth snickered. "Ryan, did you ever see how mom packs? She does not just take hand luggage. Even for a weekend."

Ryan grinned. He had seen how Kirsten packed. Sandy had assured him it was a female thing. Thinking back to their trip to Tijuana when he had first moved in with the Cohens, he recalled how Summer had packed. Sandy was probably right.

The bell finally rang making Ryan jump, but he felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He waited to hear Sandy and Kirsten's voice and when the bell rang a second time started to get up to answer it, but then saw Julie was only a step away.

"Sandy, Kirsten." She opened the door wide with smile to match. "So good to see you. How was your trip back?"

"Hi, Julie." Kirsten leaned forward and pecked her friend on the cheek. "Are the boys ready?"

"They're chomping at the bit to go home."

"I'm not surprised," Sandy mumbled. Julie heard him and raised her brow. He had the decency to blush; after all, she had kept their boys in check for the weekend.

"Boys," Julie called. She turned around and nearly collided with Ryan. Seth stopped on his brother's heels. "Oh. You're here."

Kirsten's face lit up as soon as she saw her boys. "Seth. Ryan. We missed you." She took them both in her arms and hugged them tightly. Sandy walked up to the trio and wrapped his arms around them too.

"So, how was the weekend?"

Ryan guiltily glanced at Julie before quickly saying, "It was fine." He didn't add any enthusiasm, knowing Kirsten and Sandy would definitely realize he was hiding something if he had. "How was yours?" he asked.

"Productive." Kirsten kissed him on the top of his head. "You boys ready to go home?" She turned to Julie. "Thanks so much for having them."

"It was our pleasure."

Seth and Ryan glanced at each other, wondering when it had been Julie's pleasure, but decided it wasn't worth risking exposure and grabbed their bags, heading for the front door.

"Is my dad home?" Kirsten asked, stopping Ryan and Seth mid-stride. "I just want to thank him too."

Caleb strode into the entrance hall at that moment. "Kiki. You're home."

"Hi, Dad." She stood on her tiptoes and dutifully pecked her father on the cheek. "I hope the boys weren't too much trouble."

Seth, his overnight bag slung over his shoulder, held his breath. He could feel Ryan doing the same beside him.

But before Caleb could answer, Julie interrupted, "Kirsten, would you like to stay for dinner? I'm sure you and Sandy are tired from the long trip and won't want to prepare dinner at home."

Seth let out his breath slowly, relief washing over him, even though they weren't out of hot water yet. Surely his parents would refuse. "Takeout would be fine, Mom." Seth thought he heard a squeak in his voice, but no one commented, and he hoped it was his nerves playing tricks on him. He clenched his fist until it was lily white and bounced on the balls of his feet. "We can call it in now and pick it up on our way home. We wouldn't want to upset our routine."

"But you have a home cooked meal waiting for you right now," Julie insisted with her mannequin smile. "Dinner will be ready in five minutes. In the meanwhile you can catch Caleb up on your meeting."

"Julie has a point." Kirsten turned to Sandy. "Is that okay with you?"

The boys turned hopefully to Sandy. Surely _he'd_ refused supper with his hated father-in-law. No such luck. Sandy reluctantly nodded. "Go catch up with your dad." He turned to Julie. "Do you have a pre-dinner beer for me?"

"Right this way."

"Are we in a pod village?" Seth whispered to Ryan. "Something is going on."

"I don't know. But this does not bode well for us. Just keep your cool. We'll get through this in one piece."

"Did you notice," Seth continued, "that Grandpa wouldn't look me in the eye? What do you think that's all about?"

"So, tell me about your weekend boys." Ryan's heart leaped into his throat when he felt a heavy hand land on his shoulder.

Sandy was standing behind them, a beer bottle in one hand and the other draped lazily over Ryan's shoulder. His smile was so big, all his teeth were showing. If Ryan didn't know any better, he'd think Sandy had something up his sleeve. But there hadn't been time for Julie to share everything had there? His stomach tightened and cramped wondering what Sandy and Kirsten knew.

"Let's go watch TV until dinner is served. I'm sure we can find a Stallone movie on one of the one hundred sixty channels."

"Yeah, you go ahead Dad. Ryan and I are just going to check our room one more time to make sure we didn't leave anything behind."

Sandy winked. "Don't take too long."

Ryan followed Seth, though he was certain they had packed everything. It took him a moment to realize Seth wanted him alone so that they could talk.

"They know," Seth insisted.

"You're overreacting."

"I'm not. They know. And we've got to play it cool. There's the Junior class ski trip next month and the prom and you know that's all going down the tank if we get caught."

"Well, Sandy will definitely know something's up if we stay away. Just play it cool. Come on," Ryan cajoled. "I saw you in action today. You can do it."

Seth straightened his back and stood ramrod straight, a smile spreading across his thin lips. "I can. I did. Okay, let's go in."

But Sandy didn't say anything. By the time they came to sit with him, good to his word he had found a Stallone movie. Seth and Ryan sat on either side of him and Sandy spread his arms on the back of the couch, casually resting them on each of his boy's shoulders. Neither Seth nor Ryan could concentrate; instead they kept stealing glances at behind Sandy's back.

Finally, unable to take the stress anymore, Ryan asked Sandy about his weekend. But before Sandy could answer with any embarrassing details — and his face clearly showed that he was about to divulge some— Julie announced dinner.

They all adjourned to the formal dining room, where the table was set with the same fine china of the night before. It seemed to Ryan that Julie always had to put on a show.

"I'm glad the meeting went well, Kiki. Thank you for doing this for me," Caleb said as they all sat down. "I know it wasn't easy to leave the boys for the weekend."

"It seems that was just an overreaction on my part. You all looked unscathed," Kirsten said as she covered her wineglass, refusing the red wine the maid was offering.

"What did you expect, Mom? Scratch marks?"

"I thought your grandfather might lose a few more hairs. I thought Julie would retreat for all day spa treatments."

"She did that anyway," Seth offered with a grin.

"I must admit," Julie commented, sipping her wine, "having two boys in the house takes more energy than having two girls. Kaitlin and Marissa bicker. They whine. But the house doesn't shake."

Kirsten covered her face. "I'm afraid to ask."

"Mom, we're innocent. Don't listen to them."

Seth caught his grandfather's gaze and looked down at his plate. Suddenly, he was more interested in the food and the arrangement of his cutlery than in the conversation around him.

"Well, at least they weren't sneaking out every chance they go," Sandy generously added to the conversation.

Ryan choked on the soda he was drinking and broke into a fit of coughing. He was bent over his plate, trying to catch his breath, while Sandy calmly patted his back. "You okay?" he asked softly.

Red-faced, but able to breathe again, Ryan nodded.

"The way you and Seth were acting," Kirsten said once she was sure Ryan was okay, "You'd think that your grandfather had forgotten to fill me in on some important details." Kirsten dabbed at the corners of her mouth with her napkin. "But I lived with Grandpa. I know you can't get anything past him."

"Right," Seth agreed. "Not even with my stealth ability to get past by you and dad."

Ryan didn't know how Seth could act so calm and glib. His hand was shaking so hard, he couldn't direct his fork to his plate. His stomach lurched at the conversation, because in his hearts of hearts he knew and Sandy and Kirsten knew every intimate detail of the weekend and were just waiting to bawl them out.

"So how was it in the Newport group?" Kirsten asked as she sliced her chicken cutlet into bite-size pieces. "What did you do all day? It must have been boring."

Caleb broke out in a hacking cough.

Kirsten stopped cutting and quickly poured a glass of water for her father. "Are you okay, Dad? Is your heart bothering you?"

Caleb sipped the water and nodded. "Just choked on my food. I'm fine. I'm interested to hear how the boys kept busy today. Tell us."

"Oh. This and that," said Seth. "Mostly we surfed the web."

"Really? When I spoke to Maria today she told me the Internet connection was down."

"That was just for a little while," Ryan explained hastily.

"That's strange. I couldn't get it up for most of my meeting," Caleb added.

Ryan felt the sweat trickling down the side of his head. He bit his bottom lip.

"Come on. Why don't you want to tell us what you did?" Kirsten asked in a teasing voice. "You think you can shock dear old mom?"

Seth stared at Ryan and suddenly saw everything. He noticed Ryan's shaking hands, the sweat dripping down the side of his head, and the gnawing of his bottom lip. Ryan was going to crack. Sighing, Seth put down his fork, and slumped back in his chair waiting to see what would happen. He surveyed the faces of his grandfather and parents and even Julie. They knew what was coming. They had all conspired together to make him and Ryan crack under the pressure.

He shook his head and wondered how he could get Ryan to see what was going on. Clearing his throat loudly, Seth jumped back into the conversation. "Mom —"

But Seth didn't have a chance to say anything.

"Okay. We were making out with some girls," Ryan blurted out.

"Really?" Sandy leaned forward on his elbows.

Seth tried to kick Ryan under the table.

"Caleb made us go to the Newport Group because the night before we had snuck out of the house. And it wasn't the first time we had tried. Julie caught us trying to leave the afternoon before."

"Aha," Kirsten declared.

"And Seth tried to distract his grandfather by asking him to share his Viagra."

Kirsten spit out the water she had in her mouth, a stream spraying the table.

"You forgot to add that detail, Dad" she laughed.

Ryan's heart sank. "You knew?" He turned his head to Seth. "This was all a set up? Oh Lord." He buried his head in his hands as he noticed all the faces nodding at him. "So we're grounded until next fall?"

Sandy shook his head. "Boys, I think this weekend calls for a lot more creative punishment."

Kirsten raised her glass in toast and the sound of glasses clinking was heard while Seth and Ryan faced each other in horror, trying to figure out what Sandy had in store for them.

FIN


End file.
